The average price for gasoline across Northeast Ohio is a nickel higher this week at $2.720 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.
Amid refinery issues, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reports the region saw utilization drop from 91.8 to 85.9 percent. Despite this, stocks increased marginally by 200,000 barrels to total 50.7 million and the region saw only moderate fluctuation. If utilization falls further, motorists in the region can expect gas prices to increase, especially as the summer driving season approaches and stocks sit at a nearly 6-million-deficit compared to the same time last year.
This week’s average prices: Northeast Ohio Average $2.720
Average price during the week of April 29, 2019 $2.676
Average price during the week of May 7, 2018 $2.654
Average prices of the unleaded self-service gasoline in various areas:
$2.679 Alliance
$2.717 Ashland
$2.743 Ashtabula
$2.729 Aurora
$2.694 Chesterland
$2.718 Cleveland
$2.696 Elyria
$2.710 Independence
$2.666 Lorain
$2.739 Lyndhurst
$2.734 Massillon
$2.741 Mentor
$2.752 New Philadelphia
$2.678 Niles
$2.741 Norwalk
$2.778 Oberlin
$2.708 Parma
$2.689 Ravenna
$2.723 Solon
$2.792 Willard
$2.684 Youngstown
On the National Front
With the national gas price average at $2.89 – just a penny more expensive than last week – most states are seeing moderate ups and downs at the pump. Twenty-seven states saw gas prices decrease or hold steady on the week, with Delaware (-4 cents), Kentucky (-3 cents) and North Carolina (-3 cents) seeing the largest declines.
While gasoline demand remains robust, gasoline inventories built for the first time since early February, which contributed toward the national average only increasing by a penny. Today’s average is just eight cents cheaper than the highest pump price of 2018, which was set going into Memorial Day.
At the close of Friday’s formal trading session on the NYMEX, West Texas Intermediate increased slightly to settle at $61.94. Although prices inched up on Friday, crude saw losses last week after new concerns about U.S. oversupply emerged. The EIA's weekly petroleum report revealed that domestic crude inventories jumped significantly last week by 10 million barrels. They now sit at 470.6 million barrels, which is nearly 35 million more than the level last year at this time. Crude inventories have not been this high since September 2017, according to the EIA’s data. An all-time record high domestic crude production last week contributed to the substantial growth in U.S. stocks, which likely also was a reason crude oil saw losses on the NYMEX last week. Market observers will look toward EIA’s weekly report this week to see if the growth in crude stocks continues ahead of summer.
Motorists can find current gas prices nationwide, statewide, and countywide at GasPrices.AAA.com.